Dispelling False Rumors About Cuba

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• SAFETY

Cuba is the safest country in the world. There is virtually no crime in Cuba, especially for tourists. There are no cartels in Cuba. No gangs. No mafia. No drugs. No human trafficking. Child prostitution is strictly prohibited and stigmatized. No one has guns in Cuba. Even the police don't carry guns. Cuba is a very safe island. All you'll get in Cuba are a beautiful people, delicious cigars and amazing rum to enjoy while listening to salsa.

• HOMELESS

Cuba has no homeless. Every Cuban has a birthright to a home they own. They can sell their home and use the gains to upgrade, or buy 2 homes - which is the max. Sometimes you might see someone in Cuba who "looks" homeless, but they are not. This will become more clear as you read more below.

• POVERTY

There is no "poverty" in Cuba as capitalist nations define it. Remember, every Cuban gets a food card, a home, a job, full healthcare, public transportation and free K-19 education. What Cubans suffer from is an extreme lack of products and materials because of the 65 year long US embargo. The US embargo says that any company that does business with Cuba cannot do business with the US. So, for example, if Starbucks opens one coffee shop in Havana, they would have to close all of their stores in the US. For this reason, companies around the world are afraid to do business with Cuba because they would lose the entire US market. This rule is even more pervasive because it prevents international shipping companies to deliver products to Cuba. So Cuba has been left with a severe shortage of products throughout the 65 year embargo. It's this shortage of products that people mistake for "poverty" in Cuba, whereas Cubans actually have tremendous social services through their government. Therefore, for Cuba, think "product not poverty."

• EDUCATION

Cuba has very low illiteracy. In fact, most Cubans are highly educated and many even speak several languages. Cubans have free education from kindergarten up to graduate school. Havana University is a world renowned college where students from around the world also come to study. When visiting Cuba, it's wonderful watching kids walking to school in their uniforms. It's really unbelievable seeing how educated and intelligent most Cubans are. 

• HEALTHCARE

Cuba has one of the best healthcare systems in the world, which is free for all Cubans. Even Cubans living abroad receive free healthcare in Cuba as long as they return to Cuba every 2 years for 2+ weeks. For the last 50 years, Cuba has flown its world class doctors and nurses into natural disaster areas and war zones around the world to help victims at no cost. 

More than 400,000 Cuban medical professionals have completed missions in 164 countries around the world, saving the lives of tens of thousands of people.  

Also, over 35,700 health professionals from 138 countries have been trained in Cuba FREE OF CHARGE.

In six decades of constant work, the Cuban doctors and other health workers have done 1,900,000,000 patient visits, with a monthly average of 5,000,000 patients. They have performed 14,000,000 surgeries, 4,000,000 deliveries, and have been responsible for saving 8,300,000 lives.

After hurricane Katrina, Cuba immediately put 40 doctors and nurses on a plane and sent them toward New Orleans, but George Bush did not allow them to land and sent them back to Cuba. 

On one of my trips to Varadero, Cuba, my wife and I caught a stomach bug. We were so amazed how beautiful and helpful even a small town medical clinic was. They took chest x-rays, did saliva and blood tests, gave us antibiotics, nebulizer treatments and even vitamin shots in our behinds. We did not have to pay a penny.

• TOURISM

Cubans treat their tourists as beloved guests, especially Americans. Cubans know their history well, and they really appreciate how America rescued them from the cruel Spanish conquistadors. They learn about the Spanish-American War in school, and appreciate that we freed them from slavery. You will feel very welcomed in Cuba. Americans think Cubans hold the embargo against tourists, but they don't. Cubans know that the embargo against them is just a political injustice held in place by the rabid voices of the Cuban exiles in Miami and the money lobbies of the US tobacco, sugar, coffee and rum industries.

• FREEDOM

There is much freedom in Cuba. The only real political restriction on Cubans is against organizing a counter revolution to the Cuban socialist system. Other than that, Cubans have tremendous freedom. Conversations in Cuba are open and vibrant, as long as you don't try to organize a revolt. Cuba also has vibrant and fully democratic local elections, with a lot of involvement from local residents. Cuba's national election system, on the other hand, is similar to European parliamentary systems. Again, the only candidates they don't allow are counter revolutionaries who want to undo their socialist system of government, which 99% of Cubans support. 

• FREE ENTERPRISE

There is free enterprise and religious freedom in Cuba. There are a plethora of mom-and-pop private businesses in Cuba like restaurants, hotels, taxis, shuttles, ice cream parlors, hair salons, nail shops, book stores, contractors, lawyers, music bands, etc. These businesses are privately owned and simply pay taxes to the government. What's wonderfully unique about Cuba in this regard is how there are no chain stores or restaurants anywhere. No giant corporate ads on the streets or on TV. No malls or superstores. Just lots of cute little private businesses. 

• RELIGION

As for religion, there are churches, synagogues, mosques, Buddhist temples, etc. freely practicing in Cuba. Of course, the indigenous Cuban religion of Santeria is also freely practiced throughout the island. In fact, my wife and I renewed our wedding vows at a beautiful Catholic church in Havana, and attended a wonderful Christmas eve ceremony at a UNESCO world heritage cathedral in Old Havana. And I'm Jewish. 

• DISCRIMINATION

There has also not been any systemic racism, sexism or homophobia in Cuba. Fidel forbade such discrimination soon after the revolution, although it did take him a little longer to ban homophobia. But today, Cuba has little to no systemic discrimination. Cuba is even one of just a few Latin American countries where same sex marriage is legal. In fact, there is a large LGBTQ hotel in Havana with rainbow flags on the outside. Obviously, as a truly socialist country, Cuba also has no class discrimination. For example, a maid at a hotel is on the same footing as the hotel manager. 

• ELECTIONS

Cuba has free and vibrant elections. On the local level, all officials are elected democratically. On the federal level, Cuba's leaders are elected by a system very similar to European parliamentary frameworks. The only negative about Cuba's elections is that federal offices can only be filled by candidates approved by the government. But this is understandable for a small island under a crippling 64 year long embargo designed to topple the government itself. Under international law, an embargo is an act of war. So it's reasonable for the Cuban government to try to protect itself from a superpower adversary just 90 miles off its shores.  If the embargo is lifted, and Cuba is allowed to function and trade freely across the globe, it is quite likely that the socialist party's election restrictions will also be lifted, leading the way for multi-party national elections. But this is not logical during wartime for an island against the world's largest superpower.  Remember, the US tried to assassinate Fidel over 600 times, and even conducted an unsuccessful sneak military attack on Cuba known as The Bay of Pigs invasion.

• THE CUBAN SPIRIT

Perhaps the most unique thing about Cuba is the revolutionary spirit still alive in the hearts of most Cubans. Over 95% of Cubans still respect and honor their revolutionary heroes. They love and cherish Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Cienfuegos, and other revolutionary leaders. Although Cuba, like most countries, cannot defend itself against a US superpower, Cubans are willing to fight for their country and revolution. 

The best solution for the suffering of the Cuban people is to lift the absurd, outdated US-Cuban embargo AND WATCH CUBA THRIVE!

¡Viva Cuba!

¡Viva la revolución de Fidel! 

Patria o Muerte, Venceremos. 🇨🇺